The effects of neurotensin, beta-endorphin, and bombesin on ethanol-induced behaviors in mice.

The effects of the three peptides neurotensin, beta-endorphin, and bombesin on ethanol-induced behaviors were studied in mice. Intracisternal administration of these peptides to mice prolonged the duration of sleep induced by ethanol (5.2 g/kg). Neurotensin and beta-endorphin also enhanced ethanol-induced hypothermia. None of the peptides, when administered alone, produced sleep. However, all three compounds impaired the aerial righting reflex and induced sleep when followed by an IP dose of ethanol (3.5 g/kg), which alone did not induce sleep. These results, taken together with previous findings, suggest that neuropeptides may be involved in the complex mechanisms of action of ethanol on the CNS.